Search Marketing News

Virtual high streets

Author :: Angela Hughes
Client Services at Mediarun
Date    :: 13th Aug 2009
Website Design & Build News

At a time when marketing budgets are focused on increasing return on investment and reducing marketing spend; can a new influx of virtual worlds attract advertisers and retailers to invest?

Revolution magazine recently reported a new generation of virtual worlds soon to launch. Second Life has been around for some time now, and has lost favour with a wide group of marketers and investors. Originally hailed as a ground-breaking way to increase brand engagement and target customers more effectively, few campaigns have sustained significant returns to make the investment viable. The format encourages users to buy virtual real estate and effectively maintain a virtual life on the platform. A number of negative PR stories, which included adultery and divorce, ensured that Second Life was thrust into the mainstream arena. Unfortunately this did not benefit those brands and companies that had made the investment to join the virtual world.

This could change as Real Life and Near Global launch later this year. Backed by venture capitalists Ariadne, both ‘worlds’ will look to be run as profitable ventures and want to give the user a purpose. As such, the format they are proposing will encourage brands and retailers to invest, and to be able to see a return on that investment in a more tangible way.

Real Life aims to train people for a career, using virtual job simulations. The eventual aim is to become an online training school, covering most occupations and careers. Education institutions and publishers may be keen to be involved in this project, to reach a new audience in a unique, engaging way. It is also beneficial for all businesses to consider the implications of a wave of new technologies when it comes to training and hiring new employees.

Near Global aims to be a virtual version of London - it is an actual virtual high street. Targeting retailers initially, it provides an opportunity to buy and sell products online with the unique proposition that customers can visit shops as they would do in real life, on real streets. Real estate will be sold and companies can set up shops targeting this virtual shopping audience.

Currently uptake on virtual worlds is still a niche area in comparison to the boom experienced with popular social networking websites such as Facebook. However as companies continue to seek new and innovative ways not only to communicate with customers, but also to encourage sales, this medium has huge potential. The main barrier to entry is the production costs involved in the development of virtual shops and brands – in the current climate, marketers are cautious to allocate squeezed budgets on the next gimmick to grab the headlines. In the coming months it will be interesting to see how marketing spend is split between on and offline channels, in addition to which of the many new social networking and virtual worlds will carve out a niche in the market by providing genuine purpose for both users, advertisers and sellers.